Tricia Levenseller mined ‘Pirates of the Caribbean,’ ‘The Princess Bride,’ ‘Ever After’ and more for debut

Tricia Levenseller, whose YA pirate romance, Daughter of the Pirate King, is new this week, joins us to share the many influences on her debut.

Tricia Levenseller

Tricia: It will come as no surprise that my favorite movie of all time is Pirates of the Caribbean. I still remember the day I saw it for the first time. The movie was already out on DVD, and my mother had purchased it. I was a teenager, home alone, looking for a way to entertain myself. So I thought I’d give it a chance. As soon as I watched it all the way through, I played it again immediately. And again, and again, and again. I fell asleep watching the movie — and did so every night for the next several weeks. To say I was blown away is putting it mildly. I think the best thing about the movie is the way it combines pirates and fantasy. I had never seen this done before, and I started searching for stories like this in book form. I scoured the YA shelves for books about pirates, but they were scarce. And books about female pirates were even scarcer. I finally realized that if I wanted a pirate book with magical elements, I would have to write it myself. So I wrote Daughter of the Pirate King.

I love a good fight scene, and there were several movies that helped with all the sword fighting in DOTPK. The Battle of Helm’s Deep from The Lord of the Rings is the most epic battle in movie history, in my opinion. All the different characters rely on their strengths, their surroundings and each other to beat the bad guys. I try to use these elements in my own fight scenes. Other movies with excellent sword fights include The Mask of Zorro, The Princess Bride, Star Wars and Disney’s The Three Musketeers.

Complex and interesting characters really drive a story. I find the dynamics in The Count of Monte Cristo movie fascinating. Friends turn to enemies. Lies and deceit lead to betrayal. A single man has everything he loved ripped from him, yet he still manages to build new friendships and trust with those around him. Character motivation is slammed in your face — in a good way — in this fantastic revenge story. It’s such a good example of how characters interact with one another and are affected so prominently by one another. While Daughter of the Pirate King isn’t a revenge story, I tried to create character relationships that were just as vivid as those found in this movie.

My favorite element of most stories, no matter their medium, is usually the romance. Ever After has the most amazing scenes between the love interests. When it comes to writing romance, I’ve learned one of the most crucial things to do is make the love interests’ interaction regular yet different every time. Ever After does this beautifully, and I tried to do the same thing with DOTPK. I also love the banter in Ever After — I think this is also a must when writing romance. I also want to mention the TV show The Vampire Diaries — it has some of the best romantic tension I’ve ever seen. It manages to carry from season to season while still being satisfying. I’m still working out how they managed that. Then there are so many fantastic books with amazing romances that inspired me: Vampire Academy, The Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy, His Fair Assassin, Graceling and Throne of Glass, just to name a few.

And finally, let’s talk about magic. I am fascinated by well-developed magic systems. No one does this better than Brandon Sanderson. I find the magic system in his Mistborn trilogy absolutely fascinating. I like it when magic has clear rules and limitations, and I used this idea when creating the magic the sirens in DOTPK use. I was also inspired by Dan Well’s I Am Not a Serial Killer books when writing the sirens. Serial killers and the sirens I created have some of the same traits. After all, sirens kill dozens of men throughout their lifetime.

And I believe those are all the main influences for DOTPK. I am so deeply grateful to all the creators who have come before me — and all those who will come after. Storytelling is such a powerful art, and I’m proud to be a part of it.

About Daughter of the Pirate King:

There will be plenty of time for me to beat him soundly once I’ve gotten what I came for.

Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map—the key to a legendary treasure trove—seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship.

More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the map: her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate Riden. But not to worry, for Alosa has a few tricks up her sleeve, and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King.